What's Happening to Me!
by KirasXPearl
Summary: Naruto is undergoing a strange and ominous transformation in both mind and body. Can Hinata help him get back to normal or is he doomed to remain a half fox forever? Naruhina.
1. Chapter 1

Hiya! I don't own Naruto.

This is controversial to 'One Safe Place'

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What's Happening to Me!

Naruto dropped his toothbrush and stared at his reflection, wide-eyed and gaping. "What the hell?" He touched the orange fox ears poking out through his blonde hair. "This has to be some sort of joke..." He tugged at them gently,and then harder when they didn't give. "N-no way!" he gasped. He stepped away from the mirror in fear. He could see his own expression quite clearly. "Now how did this happen?" he wondered aloud. Naruto edged out of the bathroom and rushed into his room, desperately looking for something to hide his new ears.

The doorbell rang, sounding oddly cheery for his taste at the moment. "Dammit! Why now?" He glanced around and spotted his night cap. He pulled it on decisively and ran to open the door.

***

Sakura was waiting outside Naruto's door. He was late for an important training lesson and Kakashi had sent her to pick him up. She sighed. Why was the world conspiring against her plans to spend time with Sasuke?

Sakura looked at her watch and tapped her foot impatiently. Just then the door swung open to reveal a scared Naruto. "There you are." said Sakura, not bothered by his obvious fear. "You're late. Come on."

"I-I can't come!" he said, trying to hide behind the door. Sakura shot him a look. "I didn't come all this way to hear that. Kakashi says you can't miss this for any reason."

"What about illness?" "Only if you're bed-ridden and dying."

Naruto didn't want to tell her what had happened. What would she think? She would probably be scared of him. He didn't want that. "Okay." he said in resignation.

He tried to walk past her but Sakura stopped him. "You look like an idiot wearing that." she stated, pointing at his hat.

"Take it off." she reached out to the hat in an attempt to pull it off. "No!" Naruto swatted away her hand as a reflex and pulled the cap down further. Sakura stared at him irritably. "Tch. Whatever." she said and turned to lead him to the training ground.

***

Naruto couldn't pay attention. He wasn't able to concentrate and he felt drowsy. That was why he lost his sparring match with Sasuke and Sakura, made a fool of himself in chakra control and couldn't channel enough energy to push over a tree like Kakashi had instructed. Kakashi watched as Naruto recoiled in pain after trying to down the tree with chakra. He walked over to him and pulled his student up. "Are you okay Naruto? I've seen you do better." Naruto turned away from Kakashi. He felt ashamed of himself. Why couldn't he perform such a simple task?

Kakashi glanced at Naruto's night cap. Normally he didn't bother himself over his student's choice of clothing(unlike Gai who had been trying to get Tenten and Neji into spandex for months..)but this was just odd. Naruto reached up and unconsciously pulled the cap down over his forhead. "You seem distracted by that hat Naruto." Naruto turned to his sensei and touched his cap in case Kakashi tried something. "Maybe it would be better if you took it off." "No! I'm fine sensei! Really I am!" Kakashi had never seen Naruto so anxious before so he decided not to press the matter.

***

Naruto was on his way home. Training had been a full blown disaster. Thrice his cap had nearly fallen and thrice he came to a dead halt to fix it. 'Why is this happening to me?' his head was full of turmoil and superflous reasoning. He was so distracted that he crashed into someone carrying a huge load of groceries.

Random groceries flew in all directions and Naruto slipped and fell to the concrete, rudely awakened from his reverie.

"Ow..."came a stifled voice from beneath a brown bag. "Ah! I'm so sorry!" cried Naruto as he dug through the products. He found a hand, grasped it and pulled the person from the mess. "Hinata?" Naruto stared as she brushed herself off. "N-Naruto!" she blushed and stared back. Naruto had always found Hinata to be a strange character. Maybe it was the nervous way she acted around him. Maybe it was the way she stuttered. Perhaps it was just that she was an introvert.

But Naruto thought the main reason were her eyes. They just seemed so dead and empty to him. Blind in fact.

Naruto remembered his manners and began to help her pick up her groceries. Neji stepped out from where he was standing behind Hinata. "Watch it Uzumaki. I'm supposed to protect her from people like you." Normally Naruto would've retorted but he suddenly felt too exhausted to do so. "N-Neji s-stop it!" cried Hinata, still crimson. Neji shrugged. Suddenly Naruto felt something tickle his nose and he sneezed. Puzzled, he reached up to his face. "Huh?" he gasped. Whiskers! Real ones! Not just markings on his face anymore! He stood up in horror. The Hyuugas looked at him inquiringly.

"I-I'm sorry! I have to go now!" so saying Naruto sped away down the street. "Is it just me or is Naruto a little strange nowadays?" Hinata turned to her cousin in anger. " I-It's just y-you."she said, picking up the last of the groceries. Neji smiled impishly. "Yeah you're right. He's always strange."

***

Naruto whined at his reflection in the mirror. He touched the whiskers on his face. Six of for each marking. "No chance that I'm just growing a beard then..." he said absentmindedly. Suddenly he heard a voice. "N-Naruto? A-are you here? Th-the door w-was open s-so I j-just came i-in." 'Hinata!' thought Naruto. 'Why is she here? I said sorry!' he whipped around and , holding his hands to his cheeks, he left the bathroom. "O-oh there y-you are N-Naruto. I a-apologize for N-Neji's behaviour e-earlier." Naruto bit his lip nervously. He had to get her out of here before she noticed his whiskers. "N-Naruto a-are you okay?" "Yeah! Just peachy." he held out his hand in a 'don't worry' kind of gesture. Big mistake. "N-Naruto!" shrieked Hinata in horror. "Y-your face!" 'Dammit she saw!' he turned around in an attempt to hide.

All he heard was Hinata gasp behind him. "N-Naruto wh-what's happening t-to you?" Naruto looked behind him. "What could be worse than whiskers?" he saw a single fluffy orange tail swaying behind him. "Oh."

---

Anyway, more later. And just so you know, I'm not going to be lame and beg for reviews. Keep your damn reviews to yourself for all I care! *calms down*

But it would be nice to have some.

Cya!

Kira. 


	2. Chapter 2

Right, Chapter 2 is here at long last.

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N-Naruto what's g-going on?!" Hinata took a few rapid steps back and glanced at the door, calculating the distance in case there was an incident.

"Would you believe me if I said I don't know?!" cried Naruto, paling at the sight of his newly formed tail.

"N-Naruto y-you need h-help!" stammered Hinata, retreating further towards the door. "I'll g-go call a-a m-medic!

"No!" Naruto leapt forward and grabbed her wrist. "Don't get them involved! No one can see me like this!"

Hinata screamed and tried to pull away. She had never been so frightened in her life! Just then, Naruto's hat decided that now would be a good time to betray its secrets and promptly fell off. Naruto scrambled to pick it up but it was too late. Hinata moaned and fell forward. Naruto left the hat and instead caught Hinata.

"Damn it she fainted…" he noted wondering what to do next.

He carried her to his bedroom and laid her on the clean white sheets. He briefly noticed that she looked kind of cute.

'Fine.' He thought, 'I'll let her wake up and tell her she was dreaming. She oughta believe that.'

As for concealing his ears, whiskers and tail, he had an idea, but in the meantime he would make some tea for when she woke.

***

Hinata awoke to a teapot whistling. She mumbled something about ninja training when she suddenly realized where she was. She gasped and pulled at the sheets. She was in Naruto's bedroom! And with that revelation, the rest of her memories flooded back.

'Something bad is happening to Naruto but I don't know what!' She rose and slid the door open slowly. It obliged without a sound and Hinata caught a glimpse of Naruto.

But… he looked perfectly fine now. She carefully stepped out of the room and Naruto's ears pricked up. He turned to her with a big bright smile on his face.

"Hello Hinata! You fainted at my doorstep all of a sudden so I just took you in. Mind telling me what happened?"

"W-well y-y-you had f-fox ears a-and a-a t-tail s-so ummmmm…" Hinata realized how stupid she sounded just now and fell silent, a blush crossing her face. Naruto chuckled in amusement.

"Sounds like you had one helluva dream huh? You work yourself too hard. Take a break every now and then."

Hinata frowned in consternation. "Y-yeah… j-just a d-dream right?" She took another cursory glance around.

"I-I think I-I'll j-just go h-h-home now…" she was trying to get away as quickly as possible, lest she embarrass herself even more. Naruto replied with a nod and Hinata made her way towards the door. She was nearly out when she stepped on something rather fuzzy.

"Oops." Hinata looked to her feet and saw Naruto's night cap squashed beneath her foot. She bent to pick it up for him and stopped dead. Her eyes widened considerably and her lips parted.

"N-no!" she whispered to herself. Because, on the rim of the cap, among the crop of stiff white fuzz, lay a single solitary orange hair. She picked it up and stared intensely.

'It can't be!' thought Hinata, shooting Naruto a fearful glance. 'It's the same as the fur on…'

***

Naruto was sweating a bit. It was tough to keep up the ruse and he wasn't sure how long the jutsu would last. He had his back turned to Hinata, trying to keep eye contact to a minimum. Naruto was not a very good liar. He heard the door close softly. He gave a sigh of relief and slumped a little.

'Phew… I wonder when this jutsu will wear off. At least Hinata's gone.'

"Byakugan!" a shrill cry rang out.

"What the- ow!" Naruto was knocked into the wall with the force of Hinata's punch. Pain and confusion roiled in his head. So much so, that his jutsu was accidentally released, revealing his newfound ears, whiskers and tail. Hinata retreated a few steps.

"G-genjutsu! I-I knew i-it!" Naruto looked into her eyes, astonished. Hinata's expression was one of mingled fear and sorrow.

As Naruto sat on the floor in shock, a sudden anger filled his head. It felt unnatural, as if someone else's feelings had taken over. Naruto leapt to his feet, tail swishing furiously.

"How did you find out?" he demanded, scaring Hinata a bit.

"Th-the cap…" Hinata tossed him the cap.

Naruto growled furiously. "I'm such an idiot!" He shot an icy look to Hinata. Hinata was taken aback. She had never seen such a scary expression on his face.

"What will you do now?" his voice was dangerously low and menacing.

"H-huh?" Hinata was still in shock at his sudden transformation. Naruto took a step toward her.

"What will you do now that you've seen me like this?"

Hinata couldn't answer, for she had nothing to say.

"I said, what will you do?!" his voice had gotten forceful and his eyes were starting to take on a tinge of red. Hinata was puzzled. This was not the Naruto she knew. Instantly she realized that this had to be related to his strange transformation. She had to say something. She had to help him.

"I-m g-going to h-help you N-Naruto." She said with firm resolve.

"Huh?" The change was nearly immediate. Naruto's eyes took on their beautiful blue shade again and he calmed down considerably as he fought down the suppressing anger that was not his own. He looked at her with a strange expression on his face.

"Do you mean that?" he asked, hardly daring to breathe. Hinata nodded and smiled at him.

"Y-you don't h-have t-to b-be alone." she said.

------------

Heh…sorry for making you wait dear readers. I hope you'll understand when I say I was busy. This was a little hard to write and I hope it was good. (This is by far the most successful story I've ever written.) I wont be discontinuing so don't worry if I take a while to update 'kay?

Till next time,

Kira


	3. Chapter 3

I'm sooooo sorry! It's been so long since I posted! Forgive me dear readers!

---

"What's this Hinata?" Naruto impatiently poked at a large shopping bag Hinata had brought in. She batted his hand away and began to rummage around inside of it. From it, she produced a large black velvet cloak, a matching gentlemen's top hat and a small tube of hair gel.

"Th-this w-will help y-you blend i-in." she said simply, looking proud of herself. She then proceeded to open up the hair gel tube and began to plaster the whiskers down onto his face.

"There. J-just l-like your o-old m-markings." Naruto glanced in the mirror and smiled. It was working! Then she thrust the clothing into his arms.

"Do I have to wear this?" Naruto grimaced. Hinata nodded.

"Y-your night c-c-cap was a-attracting too m-much attention."

"Something tells me I'll be attracting attention anyway…" he muttered as he sized up the hideously formal attire. Nevertheless he pulled the cloak on over his normal outfit and set the hat on his head.

"P-perfect!" Hinata clapped her hands together. She smiled at Naruto's disgusted expression. "D-don't worry! Y-you l-look great." Naruto tried to smile and failed miserably. She was happy but he felt like he had gained ten pounds overnight. Naruto sighed in resignation.

"Fine, well what now?" he asked.

"Y-you should g-go o-on with y-your l-life a-as normal." She replied.

Naruto grimaced at the thought. Tomorrow was going to be a **long **day indeed.

***

The next day, Naruto got dressed in his fiendishly heavy new clothes and set out for his daily training, braving the stifled laughter and pointing of the people around him. By the time he reached the training ground, he was bright red and thoroughly embarrassed.

'Dammit I look like a complete idiot!' he thought as Sakura and Sasuke stared at him in disbelief.

"Ummm… you look er… different…" said Sakura. Naruto didn't answer but flushed an even brighter shade of red.

"Whatever." She turned away and pretended to be indifferent. Sasuke merely scoffed and muttered 'dobe' under his breath.

Kakashi arrived later on. Naruto tried not to make eye contact with him. Kakashi pretended not to notice and started to brief them on their training exercise for the day. Retrieving a small ribbon from the top of a tall tree without using your arms. It was simple really but in his condition, it seemed a momentous task to Naruto. Juggling between the hat, cloak and chakra was, as you can imagine, not an easy task and Naruto was not known for multitasking. Still, Naruto is Naruto so he gave it 100% anyway.

***

Kakashi watched Naruto fall heavily for the fifteenth time. What was he thinking? There was no way he could do anything in that attire. Something was gravely amiss. Finally, the boy fell for the last time and lay there, breathless. Too proud to stay down, too tired to get up. Kakashi sighed and helped him up.

"I want you to take a break. One week okay?" he said in careful tones. Naruto nodded quickly and turned to leave but Kakashi grabbed his shoulder and bent to his level.

"Is there something you want to tell me Naruto?" he asked quietly. For a moment, Naruto wanted to spill out his heart to his sensei and tell him everything but his doubts overcame him and he slowly shook his head.

***

"Kakashi is something wrong?" Asuma looked at him questioningly. His friend had been silent all day. Of course this was not strange but Asuma could sense that something was bothering him. Just then they saw Naruto walking some distance away from them. Asuma's eyes widened.

"What in the…?" Kakashi smiled weakly at Asuma's stunned expression.

"Now you see what's wrong?" he said. Asuma quickly regained his posture.

"Now don't take this too seriously Kakashi. It's just a phase. All teenagers do that at some point of time." he grinned. Kakashi glanced at him.

"Why, he'll be back to normal in a matter of days! In the meanwhile, just don't press him too hard and don't prod at his secrets. They hate that." Kakashi laughed.

"You sound like a therapist you know that?" Asuma chuckled and put up a finger.

"More like the voice of experience my friend. You would never guess what Shikamaru did last week…" As the two men talked and laughed, Kakashi eventually let his anxiety about Naruto fade away.

***

Naruto walked as fast as he could go in those suffocating clothes. He wanted to get home as soon as possible so he could take the ensemble off. He dashed through the market, the less socializing the better. He looked up, he was nearly there! Just a little more and he could avoid everyone for the rest of the week. But unfortunately for Naruto, luck was not on his side.

"Hey Dobe!" Naruto stopped abruptly.

'Dammit not now!' he thought as Sasuke caught up with him.

"I see your dress sense is still dropping." He said with a smirk.

"But something tells me you're not just being stupid this time. Are you trying to copy me or something?" he looked at Naruto expectantly. "Well?" Naruto growled a bit. He was running on a short fuse today.

"Now why would I do that?" he asked in dangerously low tones. Sasuke chuckled softly.

"Don't play innocent. It's obvious that you're after Sakura. But since a loser like you can't tell, Sakura is NOT INTO YOU." Naruto's frown deepened. He was tired, hot and his clothes were strangling him to death. He was not in the mood for Sasuke's taunts.

"Just save yourself the heartache, dobe and give up now." Naruto's mood was worsening.

"I'm warning you Sasuke…" he muttered. But Sasuke was on a roll, he paid no heed to Naruto.

"She's too good for you dobe. Nobody loves you, you know that? Not even Hinata would go out with you…"

"THAT'S IT!" Naruto roared and pounced on Sasuke. Sasuke cried out at the sudden assault and the two fell to the floor. The people in the market stopped whatever they were doing to watch the shinobi fight. It wasn't much of a fight though, in fact, it hardly lasted five seconds. Naruto was overcome by a sudden burst of fury and he landed a solid punch at Sasuke's face, breaking his nose in the process. He began to bleed and at the sight of blood, Naruto seemed to regain control of himself.

"D-dobe what's wrong with you?!" Sasuke clasped his hands over his nose and gasped in pain. Naruto's eyes widened as he realized what he had just done.

'What's happening to me?!' he turned and broke into a run, leaving Sasuke to his pain.

***

"N-Naruto? Y-you l-look worried." Hinata was standing at the Hyuuga Manor's door.

"Hinata is anyone else home?" whispered Naruto.

"J-just N-N-Neji." She replied, looking concerned. "Wh-what happened?"

"We'll talk inside." he said, looking around anxiously. Hinata nodded and let him in. She led him to her room and closed the door behind them. Naruto threw off the cloak and hat and proceeded to collapse on the bed. He sighed blissfully at the feeling of freedom.

"S-so what h-happened?" Hinata sat down next to him. Naruto frowned at the memory.

"You wouldn't believe what I did, Hinata. Something is really wrong with me." He stood up restlessly and began to pace nervously. Hinata grew pale.

"Ummm N-Naruto?" But Naruto wasn't listening. He was pacing rapidly around the room and narrating the day's events, especially stressing on his crazy attack on Sasuke.

"N-Naruto I th-think we have b-bigger p-problems." Naruto stopped and looked at her.

"Honestly Hinata, I don't think things can get much worse than this." Hinata shook her head.

"You m-might w-want to l-look a-at your tail." she said in a worried tone. Naruto sighed.

"What could possibly…" Naruto screamed. Why? Because instead of one tail, now there were two, merrily swishing behind him. Naruto started to race around the room screaming and wailing all the way.

"N-Naruto c-calm down!" Hinata grabbed onto him and held him in place. Naruto was hyperventilating; he couldn't take his eyes off the new tail! "Hinata? What's all that screaming? Is something wrong?" Neji's voice echoed up the stairs. The two fell silent as they heard Neji coming up. Hinata panicked. She quickly shoved the black clothes into Naruto's hands and pushed him into the closet. It was a small closet really. Just big enough for him to stand in.

Neji shoved open the door and stepped inside.

"Hinata?" he looked around suspiciously. "Was someone in here with you?

"N-no N-Neji!" but Hinata was a terrible liar. Neji took another look around the room. Finally he looked like he was going to leave when there was a thump in the closet and a muffled 'ouch' from inside. Before she could stop him, he rushed to the closet and pulled open the door. His jaw dropped as Naruto (thankfully clad in black) tumbled out.

"What the hell?!" Neji pointed at Naruto. "What was he doing in your closet?!" Neji looked horrified.

"N-Neji I c-can e-explain!" cried Hinata, blushing bright red. Naruto stayed on the floor, decided to preserve his silence.

"No! Never mind, I don't even want to know!" yelled Neji putting up his hand.

"But you!" he turned his glare to Naruto. "If you so much as lay a finger on Hinata, I will rip you apart!" Naruto gulped and nodded submissively. Neji nodded in satisfaction and stormed out of the room. Naruto stood, brushing himself off. Hinata was still bright red and so was Naruto.

"W-well I guess I'll just be leaving now…" he muttered. Hinata nodded, still too flushed to speak.

***

That night, Naruto slept fitfully. He was deeply concerned about the appearance of the second tail. Eventually he slipped off to sleep.

In the dead of the night, a voice entered Naruto's sleep. It spoke to him.

"_You resist me now, but in time you will submit to me kit_." It hissed in a silky yet seductive tone. "_And when that happens, I will be ready and Konoha will be crushed like an insect under my paw._" The voice gave an icy laugh that sent Naruto into shivers as he slept. "Yes _kit… It is not much longer now…_" The voice faded away, leaving Naruto in his feverish sleep, tortured with nightmares.

---

Phew… that was quite long. Once I start writing I never stop! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. (I worked really hard on it!) As for my extended absence, I have no excuse, I was just being lazy… Anyway, hope to see you soon!

Kira


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 already? ... How the time flies.

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In the depths of Konoha forest, lies a serenely beautiful clearing known only to a select few, one of which is Naruto. The afternoon sunshine filtered through the overhanging branches to fall onto a small pond, shimmering placidly in its light. The entire clearing was masked from the outside world by a thick barrier of thorny foliage and exotic wildflowers seemingly meant to dissuade any casual passerby. It contained wildlife in plenty from the white and brown rabbits that commonly strayed into Konoha to emerald green hummingbirds that flitted from flower to flower. Here, you could lose your senses and sit, staring for eternity.

"This p-place is…" Hinata was at a loss for words. Natural beauty like the clearing was not exactly commonplace. Naruto grinned at her as she drank in the sight. He had had a feeling that she would like this place. Naruto cleared his throat.

"So Hinata, you wanted to talk to me?" Hinata blinked rapidly. Yes, she had wanted to explain her theory about Naruto's transformation. She nodded and the two seated themselves in the middle of the clearing.

"W-well it's not m-m-much and m-maybe y-you already knew th-this." Hinata began to fumble around inside her pocket.

"O-okay l-look a-at this." Hinata produced a small painted parchment from her pocket. It had been folded many times and gave off a general aura of being ancient. Unfolding it carefully, she flattened it out in front of them.

"This is Kyuubi." Naruto scanned the picture. It was just an artist's rendition of the demon fox that had terrorized Konoha. He looked back at Hinata.

"And your point is?" he had a feeling that he knew what was coming but that didn't make the truth any easier to accept.

"W-well i-isn't i-it obvious? K-Kyuubi i-is trying t-to t-take o-o-over your body!" Hinata waited for some sort of reaction from him.

"I s-suppose the t-transformation w-will b-be complete wh-when y-you g-grow n-nine tails total." She added.

Naruto just allowed himself to fall over in the grass and stared wistfully up at the sky. Meanwhile, Hinata stowed the picture away.

"I've always known." Naruto's voice broke the silence. Hinata looked at him questioningly.

"I've always known that Kyuubi would never just let me live like a normal person." His fox ears drooped slightly. Hinata didn't know what to say.

"Because of Kyuubi, my childhood was a living hell, how can I expect him to leave me alone?" Naruto sounded bitter as he remembered those hateful memories of his past. Hinata laid down next to him, wondering what she could say.

The clearing was silent for a few moments, besides the chattering of the birds. Finally, Hinata decided to speak.

"I-I'm n-not sure a-a-about y-your childhood N-Naruto b-but I-I do kn-know th-that ever s-since I met y-you, I've a-always a-a-admired y-you…" at this point Hinata began to blush bright red.

"I-I mean y-you w-were always s-so h-happy i-in the a-academy b-but I-I knew th-that it couldn't h-have b-been easy f-for you! Y-you j-just k-kept t-trying a-and th-that w-was s-something I-I could n-never do." She received no reply from the person next to her. Hinata suddenly felt very self-conscious. Her blush deepened.

"I-I guess wh-what I'm t-trying t-to s-say i-is w-well, I-I kind of, s-sort of, y-you kn-know, I-I th-think I've fallen in love with you." She finished without a single break in the end. There. She had said it. Hinata was puzzled. She had just confessed but only silence called back.

"N-N-Naruto?" the breath caught in her throat. The air felt like dead weight. Hinata's worst fears had come true. Naruto didn't love her, probably never did, and now they couldn't even be friends. She turned to him, fear clearly portrayed on her face, and gasped.

***

Naruto was sound asleep. Hinata sighed in relief.

'Thank the Gods!' she thought. She was a little disappointed though. Here she was, finally plucking up the courage to tell him everything and he chose this moment to fall asleep. But in retrospect, it was probably for the best. After all, it was still too early to be making confessions. Hinata sighed again and edged closer to Naruto until they were shoulder to shoulder. She blushed again. She could've stayed like this forever, in a beautiful place with the person she loved. She let sleep overtake her.

***

Kyuubi awoke. He grinned to himself as he stared out through Naruto's eyes. It was much easier to take over the kit's body when he was asleep. He tried to stand but he was held back. Kyuubi looked down and smirked. A young black haired woman was clutching his right arm tightly. She was sleeping too so Kyuubi saw no reason to kill her.

"So the kit finally procured a mate." He muttered. "How cute."

He detached the girl from himself and checked himself over. Kyuubi couldn't regain his original demon fox form, but Naruto's body would suit him just fine with a little practice.

'Ears, check, whiskers, check, three tails, check." He thought with an evil smile. The third tail was the most recent addition. Kyuubi knew he didn't have much time since the transformation wasn't complete but he could enjoy himself for now. His stomach growled. Kyuubi's eyebrows rose slightly. It had been years since he had eaten anything.

"Right. Hunting. What fun!" he said, flexing his claws. Kyuubi fell on all fours. Two legs were no good for chasing down prey. He bounded away into the forest.

***

"_Naruto no!" Hinata watched in horror as Naruto laughed. Neji was injured badly. Naruto had done it. No, not Naruto. This was not Naruto. It looked like him but it's eyes glowed red in the moonlight, and it was laughing at Neji's pain. Hinata gasped as nine tails fanned out behind it._

_Neji turned weakly to Hinata and held out his hand to her. He was bleeding from a large wound in his stomach._

"_Hinata get out of here! He'll kill you!" he cried urgently. Hinata took a shaky step back, but the thing wasn't going to just let her leave. It dropped on all fours and began to run towards her._

"_No!" Neji dragged himself up and blocked it's movement. "Go!" he cried turning to Hinata again. She had no choice but to run for her life. A sudden flash blinded her and she opened her eyes to another nightmarish scene. Konoha was in flames and people scattered all around her like scared ants. She was compelled to look up at the Hokage Tower. At its tip stood the demonic version of Naruto. It had Tsunade in its grip. She struggled in vain against it._

"_Heed my words!" it shouted to the people below. "Konoha and its rule ends here!" so saying, it delivered a vicious stab to Tsunade's heart. _

"_Noooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!"_

***

Hinata had never yelled so loud in her life. She sat up, panting. It was only a nightmare this time.

'That thing was Naruto after the full transformation!' she thought in alarm. 'I can't let it come to that! I won't let it come to that…' she turned to Naruto, only to find empty space. Her eyes widened. She stood and glanced around rapidly, as the panic rose.

"N-Narutooo! Wh-where are y-yoouuu!?" her heart thumped faster. Where was he?

---

Phew! If I put this off any longer, someone would've killed me. Anyhow, I like how this is turning out and I hope you guys will stick through it with me till the end! So dear readers, could you please put the name of your fave chapter in your review? Thanks.

BTW, does Hinata stutter in her thoughts?

Till the next time!

Kira.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5! I'm so excited! (Sorry it took so long.)

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Hinata searched frantically among the brush and thickets. The wicked thorns snagged at her clothes leaving jagged cuts behind but she didn't care. The only thought running through her mind was of finding Naruto. She clutched her head in her hands, moaning. She knew that Naruto was in a delicate condition, so why did she drop her guard?

'_What will you do now that you've seen me like this?' _Hinata shivered. Bad memories. This only made her panic even more.

'Wait a minute…' Hinata blinked in stupid realization. She was a Hyuga for crying out loud!

"Byakugan!" with her clan's brilliant ability, she quickly located the hunched form of Naruto. He was near another pool of water and it looked like he had something in his hand. Hinata squinted for a better look. What was that thing? She shook her head.

'I'll figure it out when I get there.' she thought and made off in Naruto's direction.

***

Kyuubi toyed with the dead rabbit in his hands. Its life had been short and its death swift. Not that he cared anyway. Kyuubi sighed. It would seem that all the larger game had moved deeper into the forest. How boring.

'If I want to catch anything worthwhile, I had better move on.' he thought and stood. His stomach growled again.

'And fast.'

***

Naruto rubbed his eyes sleepily. When had he fallen asleep?

'I was with Hinata in the glade and then…?' he took a while to gather his thoughts until he realized where he was.

"What?! Where am I?!" he leapt to his feet. His surroundings were dark and forbidding. Panicked, he began to run hoping to see the light. Instead he crashed into a set of bars.

'Prison?' he clutched them tightly and called out into the darkness.

"What did I do? Why am I in here? Answer me!" Only silence returned his call. Naruto sighed miserably. Then a fluttering piece of dusty paper caught his eye. It was attached to the front of the prison cell. He reached out through the bars and turned it over. A strange design was scrawled on the front. Something nagged in the back of Naruto's head. He had seen that somewhere before. He thought back to the afternoon in the clearing.

'The picture of Kyuubi! There was a drawing of a seal on it!'

"No…That can't be." but the more he stared, the more obvious it became. As much as he wished it weren't true, he somehow landed up in his own sub conscience and now he was locked behind Minato's seal. Naruto groaned. This day could not get any worse…

"_Awake already kit?" _Oh look, it just did.

"Kyuubi?! How the hell did this happen?! Let me out now! He looked around nervously. Despite his bravado, the nine tailed demon fox scared him to no end.

"_Don't bother looking kit, you won't find me in that hell hole." _Kyuubi's silky voice purred down to him from apparently nowhere. Naruto looked confused.

"Wh-where are you exactly?" he asked cautiously.

"_What, you mean you still haven't figured it out? You really are __**stupid**__, kit."_

"Stop taunting and tell me what's going on here!" Naruto was beginning to get sick of Kyuubi's attitude.

"_Okay, let's start with some general knowledge. Where are you right now?"_ he teased. Naruto groaned but he realized that Kyuubi wasn't going to give him a straight answer so he decided to go along with it.

"Well, I'm in my own sub conscience, locked behind the seal that was meant for **you**." he replied icily.

"_Correct. And who was supposed to be there?"_

"Like I said before, you! What are you getting at stupid fox?"

"_Bravo, kit! Now, fill in the blank. If you're in my place then I'm in?"_ Naruto's eyes widened in horrified understanding.

"My place…" he muttered absentmindedly. This…this THING had taken over his body! Kyuubi laughed, sending shivers down his spine.

"_Oh look,"_ Naruto looked up to where he imagined the voice was coming from.

"_Your mate is here. She looks worried about you."_ said Kyuubi casually.

'Mate? What is he talking about?' he thought for a minute. Naruto hated the feeling of not knowing what was going on. He was in his own body and yet he couldn't control it. He hated that feeling too.

"_Oh, I forgot my manners. You'll want to see her right? After all, this may be the last time you see her alive!"_ Kyuubi chuckled ominously.

The air in front of Naruto's cage shimmered for a few moments and suddenly sharpened forming something like a screen. Naruto could see the forest again and he guessed that this was what Kyuubi was seeing. Then he saw her.

"Hinata!" he cried.

"_Is that what she's called? Hinata…You know what, kit? Something tells me this will be fun."_ Naruto could not answer. He willed her to leave.

***

Hinata stared at it. Naruto couldn't do something like that, could he? Finding the rabbit was bad enough but this just made her stomach turn. She had been following Naruto but then he began to move deeper into the forest. Hinata had kept good pace but she kind of wished she hadn't now.

"Naruto…wh-why?" she whispered. Kyuubi knew she was talking about the doe. He had killed it a couple minutes ago. He could have made a fine meal out of it if only the vessel hadn't woken up and now there was this puny kunoichi. The ninjas of Konoha sure knew how to get on his nerves.

"Look, I'm feeling generous today, so I'll give you three seconds to get out of my sight and as far away as possible." he said, with an air of contempt. For a moment, Hinata wanted to take up that offer but then she caught the glassy eye of the mutilated doe. She squeezed her eyes shut. No. She had to stop this here and now. Who knew? That doe could be her tomorrow.

"N-Naruto, s-snap out o-o-of it! Kyuubi's controlling you!" cried Hinata.

"Three." Kyuubi was beginning to tire of this charade. He took a step toward her. Hinata took a terrified step away.

"Naruto! F-fight h-him!"

"Two" Kyuubi's countdown carried on. He crouched in a hunting position.

"Naruto…" Hinata looked into Kyuubi's blood red eyes. She could see no trace of the boy she loved.

"One!" Hinata knew it was coming; she braced herself for the impact as Kyuubi pounced.

***

"Kyuubi, stay away from her!" Naruto shouted up, but he knew Kyuubi was no longer listening. Kyuubi had Hinata pinned to the ground while the latter thrashed helplessly.

"Byakugan!" Hinata activated her ability and aimed a sudden punch at Kyuubi.

'That's right! Fight and you could still win!' Naruto cheered mentally. Kyuubi leapt off with a half amused smile.

"_You didn't tell me you netted a Hyuga, kit! Very good…you may have some potential in you after all."_ his voice echoed down. Naruto decided to ignore that impertinent statement.

Meanwhile, Hinata proceeded to charge furiously at Kyuubi, aiming for any major chakra point in her way. Kyuubi, on the other hand, continuously sidled away every time she neared his proximity, that arrogant, overconfident smirk plastered to his face. This was just a game to him. A futile, childish game.

***

Kakashi stared at the thick grey book in his hand. It had the musty smell a book that has been attacked by silverfish and had seen many generations of sweaty fingers. Asuma gave his friend a concerned look. They were currently inside one of the oldest and shadiest bookstores in all of Konoha.

Asuma would never have given it a second look if it weren't for Kakashi and his seemingly fanatic longing for some book in the display case. At first, he thought Kakashi was after the ancient promo edition of Icha Icha Paradise but was in for a shock when he plucked up the dusty grey one beside it.

"Something on your mind Kakashi?" asked Asuma in a good natured way.

"Hm? What makes you say that?" Asuma pointed to the ignored Icha Icha Paradise.

"Oh, that…" Kakashi barely acknowledged its existence and flipped open the book in his hand. Frowning, Asuma snatched it away from him.

"What is this? A History of Broken Seals? Kind of a dark topic isn't it?" he turned a couple of pages, filled mostly with morbid pictures of dying human vessels joined with exact descriptions of the beast that escaped, why the seals had loosened and where the unfortunate shinobi died in painfully small print. Asuma gave an exasperated sigh and threw the book back at Kakashi.

"Didn't we talk about this Kakashi? There is absolutely _nothing _wrong with Naruto!" he yelled.

"Something _has_ gone wrong, Asuma… It's a gut feeling." Kakashi said in low tones. Just then, the cashier noticed the two ninjas having a staring contest in his shop.

"Sir? This is a non smoking area…" he piped up timidly. Asuma and was hardly listening.

"Yeah? Well all my gut tells me is when it's hungry!" growled Asuma. Kakashi replied with a cold expression.

"L-look…These books burn very easily, you see they're really old…" the cashier made another pathetic attempt to assert himself.

"Asuma, every time I see that boy I just know that something has gone wrong! I can sense it and I can't just allow things to happen!"

"So, all jokes aside, where's your proof Kakashi?" Asuma smashed the burning end of his cigarette against the wall, startling the perspiring cashier. Asuma meant well but sometimes he just worried about his friend. Kakashi seemed to be losing his mind the more he thought about it.

"You want proof? I'll give you proof all right." said Kakashi. The men whirled around to face the cashier (who had had quite enough of them by now.). Kakashi slammed 'A History of Broken Seals' onto the table with a mutter of 'I'll take it.'

Then he looked back at the display case and snatched up the Icha Icha Promo Edition.

"This one too."

***

Hinata found herself at the feet and mercy of Kyuubi. Her whole body ached with fatigue. Kyuubi had not been easy on her. He was completely untouched despite the girl's best efforts. Hinata felt his gaze.

"Pathetic." he spat. Hinata craned her neck to look at his face. It was full of malice and hatred, a complete contrast to the Naruto she knew. Within Kyuubi, Naruto pleaded with him, not that Hinata could hear anyway. Naruto could only speak in the imposter's head.

"_Kyuubi stop this! You've done enough!"_ he quailed. Kyuubi pretended not to notice and instead pulled out a convenient kunai from his pocket. Hinata shivered visibly, whether from fear or the cold, she could not tell.

"You are weak." he said. Hinata's face fell. She had heard that before. Many times.

"But you know what's even more pathetic?" Kyuubi's voice was like ice.

"_Kyuubi!" _Naruto sounded desperate but the demon fox seemed to be enjoying this.

"Besides being one of the most useless shinobi I have ever fought, you are holding back." Hinata stiffened at this comment.

"Is it because of this form? You can't bear to hurt my vessel?" Kyuubi held her face in his hand in a false gesture of care. Hinata wished she could deny this but found that she could not. It was true. She could not bring herself to land even one good shot at him. Well sure it was Kyuubi but he still had the form of Naruto. Every time she got close to dealing a major blow she found herself pulling back at the last moment. Kyuubi knew it and he had made the fullest advantage of her feelings.

"But don't worry dear kunoichi…" he murmured, flourishing the kunai. "It will end soon." he thrust her face down, neck exposed, and held the blade high above his head.

For the first time, Hinata was faced with the fact that she would soon die.

"_P-Please! Just let her live! She hasn't done anything to you!"_ Naruto was practically begging with the demon. Kyuubi heard him give a choked sob and rattle the bars of his cage. Briefly, Kyuubi wondered at the emotions of human beings. And then there was that other thing…Love. He shook his head in disgust.

'Love makes the humans weak.' he thought and swung the blade down.

"_Nooooooooo!"_

***

Hinata knew that she would die one day. Everyone knows that. She just never imagined that it would happen this soon…at the hands of the one she loved. But she accepted this with a cold resignation. There was nothing she could do and she was weak. Kyuubi had been right. Hinata saw him lift the kunai. She heard the kunai swing toward her neck. 100% fatal. She closed her eyes and waited for the pain.

But it never came. There was a blinding flash of light that illuminated even the inky darkness of the deep forest. Then Hinata heard something that sounded like a crack of thunder mingled with Kyuubi's howling. Hinata was almost afraid to look up.

"K-Kyuubi?" she forced herself to see.

"He's gone." said Naruto numbly. He backed away from her and dropped the kunai.

"Naruto!" she smiled at him, relief coursing inside her even through her pain. Naruto smiled back weakly as she embraced him in joy. She had no idea how it happened but she was overjoyed to see him again, his blue eyes in place of those hateful red ones.

'I somehow overcame Kyuubi and regained control of myself. But how did that happen? That could be useful to know in the future.' he was already trying to prepare himself for Kyuubi's next attack. He knew it would happen eventually. He glanced at Hinata. Naruto just hoped she wouldn't be around the next time. Today had been a close shave.

"I th-think w-w-we should g-get out of h-here." she said, interrupting Naruto's thoughts. He nodded briefly and they were about to make their way to the clearing to collect Naruto's clothing and eventually back to Konoha when Naruto was attacked by migraines. He groaned and fell to his knees. Hinata knelt down beside him in concern.

"_You think you've won but don't celebrate just yet, kit. I assure you I will be back. I can't say when but in the meantime, the transformation will continue. You haven't won kit!"_ a demonic laugh echoed in his head.

"N-Naruto wh-what happened?" Naruto grasped her wrist tightly, the pain beginning to fade away with Kyuubi's voice.

"Hinata, if I ever, EVER look like I'm going to hurt someone, you take me down… take me down, do you understand?!" he cried, fear apparent in his eyes.

***

When Hinata and Naruto were long gone, a figure leapt down from a tree. He had seen everything from Hinata's confession to Kyuubi's outburst. Neji sighed in disbelief. Naruto had nearly killed Hinata. Hinata loved him. Neji wanted to protect her. The more he thought, the more complicated it seemed. But most of all, he had been right.

Naruto was a monster.

---

WOOT! Finally! Anyway, I was thinking of adding in SasuxSaku or would that be too weird? Reviews are always nice!

Kira


	6. Chapter 6

Yeah I know… It took me a while. Hehehehehe….

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Sakura peered eagerly into the jewelry shop. It was in downtown Konoha, visited often by the rich men and women with a lot of money to burn. She had spent the last thirty minutes trying to think up a good present for the most amazing person in her life. Sasuke. Ever since his accident with some enemy shinobi in the forest, he had become more bitter and quiet than ever, if that were possible. The reason? His nose had broken during the fight, making his voice strangely high pitched and shrill. Sakura stepped into the shop, the bell on the door tinkling cutely. She immediately began to examine the display cases for something she could buy for him. Finally she picked out a platinum dragon pendant strung on a silver chain.

'Perfect!' she thought with girlish excitement. She nodded to herself and smiled. Sakura was about to tap the service bell when the cashier on duty stumbled out of the staff door, carrying a black garbage bag. She noticed Sakura and gave her a tight smile.

"I'll be with you in a moment Ma'am." she said, stumbling slightly under the weight of the bag. Sakura nodded but then she noticed a pendant hanging out of a tear in the bag. It glimmered, practically begging her to take a closer look. Sakura's curiosity was aroused.

"Wait a minute!" she called to the cashier, running up. The overburdened girl gave her an exasperated look.

"Yes?" Sakura grabbed the pendant and tugged. Out fell a white box, with a beautiful pendant hanging out of it.

"Oh wow…" she was struck speechless. It was a swirling, glittering sea of color, constantly shifting and changing, encased in a glassy orb. She only had enough time to get a glance however, because the cashier started to panic and made a wild grab at the box.

"Th-that's not for sale ma'am!" she cried, dumping the bag to the floor. Sakura held the box safely out of reach.

"What, why? You're just going to throw it out anyway, right? If you sell this to me, you can at least get some money out of it." she was having a difficult time keeping the cashier away.

"No! I'm sorry but I cannot sell that to you!" she made another lunge at the box. Sakura sighed and reluctantly handed over the white box.

"Fine, fine. Take it." The girl snatched it out of her palm with a mutter of 'thank goodness.' Sakura stood, watching her quietly as she ran out of the door, holding the box in her hand this time. A minute passed and once Sakura was sure the cashier was gone, she gave an impish laugh.

'Never underestimate a ninja!' she thought, pulling the intriguing necklace out of her pocket. She had switched the platinum dragon with the necklace at the very last minute, when the cashier was too busy screaming to notice. She placed a considerable amount of money on the table. She may be a ninja but she was no thief. Sakura gave one last triumphant smile and decided to split before the cashier caught her bluff.

***

Hinata took a timid step into the Hyuga mansion. Yes, she was late but how could she help it?

'Okay. So I was training in the forest and I lost track of time.' she rehearsed her excuse in her head. 'No big deal. That's believable.' Thankfully the interior of the mansion was dark so she guessed that nobody was home. Hinata heaved a sigh of relief and was about to rush upstairs to her room when a lone lamp switched on. She froze like a deer caught in the headlights and turned slowly, expecting to see Hiashi.

"And where were you, Hinata?" Neji stepped into the light, staring at her coldly.

"W-well I w-w-was t-training i-in the f-f-forest a-and"

"Save it." Neji cut in. "I saw everything." Hinata turned deathly pale.

"E-everything?" Neji nodded, his expression was like ice.

"I can't pretend I didn't see the monster Naruto turned into. I can't just pretend I didn't see him nearly kill you!" Neji grabbed Hinata's shoulders causing the latter to flinch. But Neji's expression softened.

"Hinata…This is for your own good. I don't want you to get hurt. Naruto is dangerous the way he is now." Hinata had a feeling she knew what was coming next.

"So," Neji straightened but kept his grip on her shoulders. "I won't allow you to meet him again. Your coming and going shall be closely monitored and I will be personally responsible for your well-being." For a moment, Hinata felt weak. Like something very wrong was going to happen and she couldn't change it. She shut her eyes and sighed.

'_You are weak.' _ Suddenly, she was struck with the memory of Kyuubi's words and a flare of anger hit her.

"N-no. You d-don't kn-know anything a-about h-him." she said, slapping his hands away. Neji was startled to hear Hinata say such a thing. It was not in her nature to argue.

"I-I know th-that h-he j-just n-needs s-someone t-t-to help h-him… T-to l-love him." she continued, looking Neji straight in the eye. But he just scoffed.

"Love is for dreamers, Hinata. This is life. Life is cruel and ruthless. And it does not wait for those are too weak to keep up." he said, being unnecessarily harsh.

"Surely you learned at least that much in the Academy?" insult upon injury. Hinata was silent. She bit back her tears and made a dash for the staircase. Neji didn't bother stopping her.

"Y-you c-can't tell m-me h-how t-t-to live m-my l-life, N-Neji!" Hinata shot him a poisonous look. Neji remained silent and let her get halfway up.

"Hinata." Hinata paused. "In the forest, I was so close to leaping out of that tree and slitting Naruto's throat open. I was this close to killing him! And if he hurts you again, I won't hesitate to take his life. Just remember that, Hinata."

Hinata stared at her shoes. She knew that. Neji wouldn't hold back if he saw Naruto like that again. Kyuubi was strong but, would he have a chance against Neji? And even if he did, wouldn't Neji be killed then? She shook her head, driving the thoughts from her mind. Right now she was going to concentrate on helping Naruto. Nothing else.

***

Kakashi and Asuma were seated on the bed in Kakashi's room. Kakashi turned the pages carefully, taking in any inkling of information. Asuma however, was looking very skeptical.

"Kakashi, you do realize that the beasts described here are only minor demons right?" he asked.

"Right." Kakashi stated simply without looking up.

"Usually such seals are sloppy and loose. The demons could come free at any time." Asuma continued, trying to make a point. His friend merely nodded as a response.

"But Kyuubi is different. He is a **tailed** beast. There is no way anyone could seal him away unless they performed a really good sealing. Seals like that don't break, Kakashi. They are permanent." said Asuma. Kakashi finally decided to look at him.

"That doesn't mean they can't loosen. It's been so many years." Asuma was taken aback.

"Do you doubt the Yondaime's power Kakashi?!" he cried. Kakashi sighed in exasperation.

"No. I'm just questioning Kyuubi's." There was an uncomfortable silence that followed, broken only by the subtle turn of pages.

"There." Kakashi seemed to smile under his mask. Asuma peered at the heading of the page.

"_Tailed Beasts and the seals that hold them_." he read aloud. Kakashi nodded and the two read together.

'_Tailed beasts are the most feared of all demons. They are extremely large, strong and have the highest IQ of any demon species. These characteristics are precisely what make their capture and sealing a nearly impossible endeavor. Their sealing, as expected is almost always a suicidal effort if done well. But that is not the end of it. Tailed beasts have infinite patience and strength. They will wait for any opportunity, any gap in their seal, to break out. The process is usually drawn out and can be divided into roughly four stages.'_

Following these words was a diagram of a tailed beast and the innocent looking girl it was sealed inside.

"That's Nekomata, two tails right?" Asuma pointed. Kakashi nodded yes. The next diagram depicted a transformation as Nekomata tried to get loose. At the first stage, the girl found herself with cat ears.

'_The minor mutations like ears and whiskers begin to appear. Usually the container will remain mentally in control. The transformation can be easily controlled at this stage.'_

In the second stage, the girl's eyes took on a tinge of red and a single tail curled around her legs. Asuma raised an eyebrow.

"Ears, whiskers and a tail? Can a tailed beast really make such dramatic changes?"

'_The demon's feelings start to take over the host body and strange behavior can be expected. In some cases, the beast may temporarily take over the mind of the host at this stage. Another sealing can push the beast back into the host body. '_

Asuma noticed that Kakashi was looking very serious but he decided not to ask. Even he had to admit that the coincidences were piling up. Why else would Naruto wear a top hat and an oversized cloak but to hide ears and a tail? They were about to read on when a knock sounded on the door. Kakashi hastily stuffed the book under the mattress while Asuma went to open the door.

***

Sasuke walked drearily down a Konoha street, buffeted by the bitterly cold wind. Ever since Naruto punched him, his nose was down for the count and he couldn't even speak without sending the people around him into peals of laughter. He knew it would heal eventually, (according to Tsunade) but in the meantime, he was stuck with a chipmunk's voice and a large bandage over his nose.

Fortunately Sasuke had managed to spread the rumor that it was an enemy ninja that attacked him. He wasn't trying to lift the blame off Naruto. It was just too embarrassing for him to admit that Naruto broke his nose.

"Sasuke! Sasuke wait up, I have something for you!" Sasuke froze. Not that annoying pink-haired girl again. Sakura had been after him for years perhaps. Sasuke had lost count.

'Might as well get it over with.' he thought and turned around. Sure enough, Sakura practically bounced up to him holding a small neatly wrapped red box.

"Here! This is yours. I picked this one out just for you!" she beamed at him, hardly bothered by the weather. Sasuke frowned. Honestly, he wasn't in the mood for gifts at the moment. He opened his mouth to say so but stopped self consciously. He couldn't talk to her! For goodness sake he sounded like a damn Muppet!

'S-since when have I cared what Sakura thinks of me?' he sighed. No use thinking about it. Meanwhile, Sakura shifted uncomfortably. Why was he being so silent and rigid? Her frown deepened. He probably just didn't like her. Sakura shut her eyes sadly, the weight of the unaccepted box heavy on her palm. But then the weight was lifted.

"Huh?" she blinked. Sasuke was holding the box. He had a slightly amused smile on his lips and he nodded. Then he opened it carefully, pulling out the beautiful orb. His jaw dropped soundlessly.

"So do you like it?" she asked hopefully. Sasuke put it on in reply and rewarded her with another smile. Sakura nearly fainted of sheer happiness.

"Thank you Sasuke." was all she could say.

***

Naruto stroked his fourth tail. Then he wagged it experimentally. He sighed, ears drooping. It was definitely real. The transformation had sped up dramatically.

"_Don't worry kit. You're looking better and better every day." _Naruto shut his eyes and blocked out the demon fox. He had been bothering Naruto ever since the incident in the forest.

"Shut up." he muttered. Kyuubi humored him and decided to leave him alone. Naruto began to pace back and forth. Finally, he just decided to let Hinata know about the new tail. Yes, it was a little late but she would understand. He put on his cloak and hat and stepped out the door. He shuddered as the cold air hit him hard. He realized that winter was fast approaching and for once, Naruto didn't look out of place as everyone was wearing winter clothes, some looking stupider than him. This revelation cheered him up considerably as he made his way to Hyuga mansion.

***

"Hinata!" Naruto knocked on the large wooden door. The mansion looked impressive against the backdrop of night, large and looming, it made Naruto feel quite small.

"Hinata, are you there?!" which was a stupid question. He had personally dropped her off just half an hour ago. And where would she want to go in such horrible weather anyway? He was about to knock again when the door swung open. Neji stood in the doorway, staring down at him coldly. Naruto gave him a nervous grin.

"Hi Neji! Is Hinata home?" he asked peering in past him. Neji's frown deepened.

"You're not welcome here." he said simply. Naruto cocked his head to the side.

"What?" but soon he was faced with a shut door again. Naruto's brow furrowed. What was happening? He ran around to the side of the mansion and stood just below Hinata's window. The inside of the room was dark making him wonder if she was even awake. Nevertheless he called up to her. A light flickered on. Naruto smiled hopefully. Then he saw Hinata walk up to the window. He waved at her mouthing:

'I need to talk to you.' He expected her to open the window and ask him to come up but was sorely disappointed. Hinata gave him a pained look and turned back into the room. Naruto was dumfounded.

'Was it something I said?' he thought, very confused. Then he moaned and clutched his head as another migraine kicked in.

"_What's it like kit? To be shunned by your supposed friends? To have no one to turn to? What's it like to be alone?" _Naruto tried to ignore Kyuubi.

"Shut up, stupid fox! You're wrong!" he cried shaking his head violently.

"_Oh yeah? Is that why your mate just ran out on you when she knew you needed her?"_ Kyuubi said tauntingly.

"Firstly, Hinata's not my mate. She's a friend. Secondly she didn't run out on me!"

"_You know you don't believe that." _Naruto looked at his shoes. Kyuubi was right. He didn't feel so sure anymore. Actually he didn't feel sure about anything anymore. Naruto knew it. He was alone. He was always alone, no one really cared! Not even Hinata. He looked back at the empty window. She was with him till the going got tough. And then she got going. The wind blew past, sending shivers down his spine, reminding him how cold the world really was. Cold, alone and helpless, Naruto put his head in his hands and began to cry. Within him, Kyuubi knew that he would break soon.

"_I can take away the pain, kit. I can make it end. Here and now. You won't have to suffer anymore. You could just let go of this world." _Naruto stopped. Why did that offer sound so good all of a sudden?

"_Just let go. Cease your struggling and I will make it end. Just give me this wretched body and you will never have to worry about anything ever again."_

Naruto's shoulder's drooped. Maybe it really was better to let Kyuubi take over. Even if he didn't, nobody would notice his sacrifice anyway. But then he stopped himself. He remembered the stories of Kyuubi's attack on Konoha. He remembered all those people who valiantly died protecting their home…and the loved ones they left behind.

Naruto blinked rapidly. When had he become this self-pitying, useless, egotistic creature?

"_I'm waiting."_

"No." Naruto said defiantly. "If I let you go, you will kill thousands, no millions of innocent people. I can't let you do that. Even if nobody cares." He heard Kyuubi growl but then there was silence. Naruto sighed. He had refused to give in this time but… He frowned.

How long could he keep this up alone?

---

Well there you have it. Please review! I get dejected when I get so many hits and nobody reviews. (If sasusaku disturbs you, please ignore it. It became necessary.)

Cya!

Kira


	7. Chapter 7

Hey! Yeah, I'm not exactly the most reliable updater around… *nervous laugh*

---

Kakashi put the book on his bedside table. At the first sight of Kurenai at the door, Asuma had run off an hour ago. Apparently they had some sort of date arranged. Anyway, he could read the rest of that book tomorrow. They had learned enough for the day. Kakashi had to force himself to sleep and forget about the disturbing things they had read. He drew the blanket up to his chin and shut his eyes. Tomorrow was a new day after all.

***

Kyuubi leaped from rooftop to rooftop as the rain fell. Reveling in his freedom, he had not worn the disguise his kit's mate had come up with. He surveyed the city below eagerly. He couldn't do anything major until he had full control over the kit, so he was just getting used to the surroundings.

Despite his strong willpower, Kyuubi had to admit, the kit was slow on the uptake. Anybody else might have realized by now that he was more vulnerable to Kyuubi when he was asleep. Shukaku's container had realized it. Anyway, such things were not really important. He was only here to exact his revenge and if the kit was too stupid to stop him well, all the better.

Suddenly, Kyuubi came to a complete stop. A grin spread over his face. Wasn't that the kit's sensei? The one called Kakashi? He was looking in through said man's window where Kakashi was peacefully asleep. As far as Kyuubi was concerned, Kakashi was a strong ninja and another possible hindrance to his escape plan.

'Actually, he must be the only ninja in Konoha who can perform another sealing.' thought Kyuubi. He decided to pay Kakashi a visit. Keeping perfect balance on the blue roof tiles, he reached Kakashi's window and gently pried it open with his claws. Silently, he slipped inside.

"Now what do we have here?" he muttered. He was staring hard at the book on Kakashi's table.

"A History of Broken Seals?" Kyuubi shot the sleeping ninja a look. Was he on to him? Kyuubi grabbed the book, just to check if his suspicion was correct. He flipped through the chapters, chuckling every now and then. Humans were so naïve. They honestly believed they could keep a demon, any demon, under their control. Then when reality hits them, what do they do? They write books. What a waste of time. But suddenly, Kyuubi's grin faded. He had reached the page that stated the phases of escape. He gave Kakashi another look. So it was true then? This human figured it out? He growled.

'I can't allow this to continue… I'm so close to being free again!' he thought. Without a second thought, he grasped the pages of the entire chapter and ripped them out in one fluid move. There was a sharp glint of steel. Kyuubi took a rapid step back as a kunai narrowly missed his nose. Astonished, he turned to the bed. Kakashi was wide awake and already reaching for a second weapon. Kyuubi mentally slapped himself. He was such a fool! Ninjas, especially skilled ones, were very light sleepers. Still cursing himself, Kyuubi managed to evade Kakashi's second throw and somersault over him to escape out the window.

"You're not getting away!" muttered Kakashi. He briefly noticed the open book and the frayed stubs of the pages the intruder had ripped out.

'So then that was…" Kakashi's eyes widened. He looked again at the shadow escaping into the rain. There was only one way to find out.

***

Sasuke looked out at the city from his balcony. He didn't really mind the rain but ever since his meeting with Sakura, he seemed too restless to sleep. He looked into his room at the wall clock. 2:00 a.m. He took a look at the necklace Sakura gifted to him. He still hadn't taken it off. It really was an amazing piece of work. Sasuke wondered what she must have done to get it. He turned his gaze back to the dark city. Suddenly he saw a black silhouette leaping across the roofs. Then another black figure appeared, apparently in pursuit.

'Strange…' Sasuke squinted to get a better look. 'Is that Kakashi sensei?' He frowned. It did look like his sensei.

'Then he must be chasing a criminal!' Sasuke reasoned. He performed some quick calculations in his head and formulated the best way to corner him. Nodding to himself, he joined the chase.

***

Kyuubi clutched the stolen pages in his hand. He looked back. Kakashi was gaining on him.

'Underestimating these ninjas will be the death of me!' he thought desperately. He had quickly realized that it was impossible to outmaneuver Kakashi on his own turf. His only option was to run and hope that he could reach the forest before his pursuer caught up. Then a kunai pierced the tile in front of him

'Another one?!' Kyuubi looked around wildly for his second attacker. Then he noticed the piece of paper attached to the kunai.

'Explosive tag!' but it was too late. The tag exploded and Kyuubi was sent flying off the roof. The stolen pages flew out of his grasp but he could hardly care less now. He just wanted to survive.

Kyuubi landed hard on the street. Thankfully the damp weather had suppressed most of the explosion. He tried to pick himself up. He knew that the ninjas were close and they were probably going to catch up any second. He stood unsteadily and tried to run but was met with a cold looking teenaged ninja.

'Sasuke Uchiha.' Kyuubi recognized him. Kakashi was only a few meters away so he decided to dispose of this one and get to the forest. Kyuubi rushed forward and grabbed the front of Sasuke's shirt, his other hand balled into a fist.

Sasuke was about to retaliate but suddenly Kyuubi let go, staggering back as if in pain. He was taken aback but nevertheless he tried to make the best of the situation. However, a convenient flash of lightning lit up the sky and illuminated Kyuubi's face. Sasuke's arms fell to his side.

"Naruto?" the person in front of him was Naruto. He had fox ears and a set of tails no doubt but this was definitely Naruto. Sasuke was stunned. He hardly noticed when Kyuubi took advantage of the situation and slunk away.

"Sasuke!" Sasuke looked up as Kakashi landed in a puddle in front of him.

"Where did he go?!" he asked impatiently. Sasuke realized that he had let Naruto escape. He shrugged sheepishly. Kakashi turned to him with a strange expression on his face.

"Did you at least get a look at him?" he asked. Sasuke didn't really know what to say.

"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you." he said with a tone that strongly resembled a rodent's. He stared at his feet.

"Try me." said Kakashi, ignoring his strange accent. Sasuke hesitated for a while.

"I think I saw Naruto." Kakashi inhaled sharply. Sasuke sighed.

"But I must have been mistaken…" he muttered. Kakashi stared at him.

"Why do you say that?" he asked cautiously. He got the feeling that he knew what was coming. Sasuke shook his head.

"He's mutated to put it simply. Fox ears, whiskers, claws and… tails." he said in disbelief. Kakashi took this in quietly.

"How many tails?" he questioned abruptly. Sasuke frowned in consternation.

"How many? I didn't count…" he shrugged. "Wait, you're not taking this seriously, are you?"

"Try to remember. This is extremely important." Kakashi stared at him.

"Ummm… Four I think." said Sasuke after some thought. "Does that reflect my level of insanity?" Kakashi had a pained expression on his face.

'Hopefully it's not too late.' he thought grimly. He ordered Sasuke to help him gather the soggy pages as carefully as possible. Once they had a sopping but complete pile, Kakashi grabbed Sasuke's arm with his free hand.

"You're coming with me." he said shortly and began to run.

"Hey what's going on?!" demanded Sasuke. He received no answer as Kakashi led him through the driving rain. Kakashi didn't answer but instead prayed under his breath.

"Please don't let it be too late!"

***

The sun rose over Konoha, drying out the last remains of last night's downpour. Life starts early in the city and people were already waking up to go about their lives. It was a beautiful day even with winter on its heels and what better way to start the morning than with 6 milliamps of electricity?

"Ow…" Hinata clutched her hand in pain. So disabling the trap on her window wasn't really an option. It was designed to let loose a jolt of electricity the minute the window was opened from the inside or outside. Neji was also guarding the door. She considered trying to slip past him. She took a few careful steps down the stairs only to find Neji calmly reading a magazine. The front door was fitted with an alarm that would go off when it was opened. Hinata decided she would rather take her chances with the window.

It took about four painful minutes later for Hinata to finally realize that she wasn't going anywhere. Giving up, she threw herself on her bed and racked her brain for some brilliant idea, some breakthrough to get her out of this house.

'I wonder what Naruto is doing now…' worried thoughts ran through her mind. 'I hope he's okay. I have to get to him before anything happens!' she bit her lip. Never before had Hinata felt so trapped in her own house! Hinata reviewed her situation.

'Neji's laid an electric trap on the window so that's out of the picture. He's also guarding the front door downstairs. Even if I somehow managed to get past him, how could I avoid tripping the alarm?' She sighed. It was hopeless. But then she was struck with an idea.

'The alarm goes off if opened from the inside and outside…' she grinned.

Meanwhile, Neji sat stonily in the living room. He regretted having to put a trap on the window. Normally he would never even dream of doing such a thing. He had to keep reminding himself that it was for Hinata's own good. Suddenly the door alarm went off. Neji's reaction was stunning. He leapt out of his seat, weapon at the ready with grim determination.

"Good morning, young man." Neji blinked. A professional looking blonde woman in a grey suit stood at the door. She gave off a strong smell of oriental perfume, suggesting that she was from a higher society. She was probably in her twenties and, as Neji blushed to notice, had a great figure. He turned quickly to the stairs only to find Hinata staring at him curiously. He faced the woman again, letting his weapon drop to his side.

"M-May I h-help you?" Neji felt a little like Hinata. The woman immediately broke into a congenial smile.

"The Hokage has ordered a census of Konoha. I would like to know how many ninjas are in this house at present and of what gender and age group." she produced a pen from her breast pocket.

"One male and one female. I'm seventeen and the girl is sixteen." he could feel himself sweating a bit. Her scent was intoxicating him. She nodded, scribbling down some notes on the pad of paper in her hand. When she was done she returned the pad and pen to her pocket.

"Thank you so much, darling!" she gave him an exaggerated wink, causing him to blush even more, turned and strolled away. Feeling the perfume dispersing, Neji began to recover.

'That was interesting… and a little suspicious.' Neji shrugged. 'I must be imagining it.' Neji shut the door.

The blonde woman looked back. Hyuga Mansion was out of sight. Quickly making a hand seal, a cloud of smoke engulfed her entirely. It parted to reveal a very triumphant Hinata.

Her plan was laughably simple. She opened the door from the inside and stepped out in the guise of a blonde business woman. She then pretended that she had opened the door from the outside. The strong perfume she was wearing was actually a ninja's tool used to fog up the opponent's thoughts. She then hastened her escape while Neji was still under the effect of the scent. Suddenly she laughed.

'So Neji has an eye for pretty women! Who would've guessed?' she thought. Then she returned to the task at hand.

'I have to find Naruto and set things straight. The shadow clone in the house won't keep him fooled for long.' Hinata ran for Naruto's house.

***

"Kyuubi?"

"_Yes kit?"_

"Why am I in a trash can?" Kyuubi didn't bother answering. Naruto was in fact, in a trash can. Thankfully the inside was just cleaned out so it was as hygienic as trash cans can get. Naruto looked around for attackers or enemies of some sort.

'Like I would be assaulted in a trash can…' he thought. 'So if I wasn't kidnapped and thrown in a garbage can then how did I get here?' Carefully, he eased himself out and noticed that he was in an alley. Dead ahead was Konoha Marketplace. Furthermore, he was not in disguise.

"Oh crap!" with a sharp swear he leapt back into his refuge.

'Was I sleepwalking?' he panicked slightly. Then he noticed that the legs of his pants were charred and he was soaking wet. Slowly, realization dawned on him.

"Kyuubi, were you fighting with my body?" he asked carefully. Silence prevailed. Obviously the demon fox wasn't in the mood for conversation. Naruto groaned miserably. Someone would come along eventually and he would be caught. Any minute now, someone would lift the lid and- All of a sudden Naruto found his trash can being infiltrated. He screeched loudly and held his hands against his face. Light poured in. But it was utterly silent. No screaming, no accusations, nothing. Cautiously, he looked to see who had discovered him.

"Hinata?" Hinata held the lid in her hand. Her Byakugan was turned on, apparently to find him. For a moment Naruto let himself feel secure but…

'Wait. She abandoned me, didn't she? Oh I get it. Now she's just trying to capture me.' He started to think on his escape routes but where could you go in that sort of situation?

"N-Naruto." Naruto gave her a cold stare, expecting a fight. He already had his fingers curled around a kunai in his pocket.

"Wh-Why a-are you i-in a t-trash can?"

---

Whew! Finally done. Oh and, I will be on a hiatus for a month or two. Busy, busy, busy! I will coronate my return by updating both my ongoing stories! Also, let me take this opportunity to thank all my dear readers and reviewers! It's your continued support that keeps me going!

Cya! (In two months!)

Kira


	8. Chapter 8

Hey! I'm back! Oh yeah, I meant to explain that Asuma **should** be dead and Sasuke **should** be gone by now but well… they're not for the story's sake. But you knew that right? I mean… I'll just shut up now.

---

Asuma and Kakashi talked in hushed tones on the other side of the latter's bedroom. Sasuke sat on the bed and swung his legs uncertainly off the edge. His sensei had dragged him here and refused to let him go home. By the heated and panicked way the two were whispering, he guessed something important was going on. His ears pricked up as he caught snatches of their conversation.

"Dangerous…out of hand…Tsunade..."

"Risky… unstable… war..."

Sasuke groaned in frustration. In that sense, Sasuke and Naruto were alike- neither of them could stand to be ignorant. Finally, Kakashi and Asuma seemed to realize his existence and walked over. Kakashi put a pile of pages on the bed next to Sasuke. He recognized them as the ones that creature had taken last night.

"Sasuke. Something very serious is happening." Kakashi said slowly, unsure how to explain. Sasuke just stared at him coldly. Kakashi scratched his head, feeling Sasuke's gaze bore into him.

"Err… Do you remember that thing you saw last night?" he started. Sasuke nodded. How could he forget?

"Yeah. That insane mirage." he recalled. Asuma shook his head.

"That was no mirage, Sasuke." he said. Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"A genjutsu then?" he guessed. Asuma shook his head again.

"An imposter?" Sasuke refused to interpret what he had seen last night as anything other than some sort of trick. Asuma sighed while Kakashi gave him a look of remorse.

"Unfortunately, that's not the case." Sasuke gave up on guessing and decided to just let them tell him.

"Just read the pages." Kakashi said, pointing to the pile. Sasuke tentatively picked up the now dry pages from the bed sheets. From Kakashi and Asuma's faces, he wondered whether he even wanted to know. But eventually, curiosity got the better of him and he opened the makeshift booklet to read. He read through the introduction and first two stages to reach the third, albeit in disbelief.

'_The Third Stage'_

A picture of the same girl but this time she was on all fours. Her eyes burned red like coal and two tails whipped around her. Apart from the previous mutations, her canines had grown sharper and her fingernails longer. She looked absolutely feral. Sasuke could barely see the humanity in her any longer.

'_At the third stage, the vessel will frequently lose control of herself. Erratic and often violent behavior can be expected. Excess chakra of the tailed beast may manifest itself in the form of shock waves. A highly unstable phase, the vessel cannot be saved at this point of time. Use of a terminus stone is the only alternative._

Sasuke turned a little pale.

"I-Is that possible? Can that really happen?" he stared at the Jounin.

"Read on." Asuma said as if speaking pained him. Hesitantly, Sasuke turned his gaze back to the book.

'_The Fourth and Final Stage'_

The picture accompanying this title was fairly straightforward. Nekomata, in its full and free demon form roared triumphantly at the moon while the vessel, thin and waiflike in comparison, lay at its feet. She was presumably unconscious.

'_The final stage of the escape. At this point, the tailed beast breaks through the seal and regains its freedom. The tailed beast is free and can only be repressed by a sealing in another vessel. The original vessel's death is inevitable. _

That was the end of the chapter. Sasuke looked back at the picture of the fourth stage. The girl was not unconscious. She was dead. Kakashi and Asuma watched as Sasuke's expression flicked from shock, disbelief and horror in the span of a few seconds. Then he made the connection.

"Wait, you're saying Kyuubi is breaking free?!?" he demanded, eyes wide. Kakashi nodded.

"If what you said is true and Naruto has four tails, that means he is currently in the second stage." With this Asuma and Kakashi began to discuss amongst themselves, leaving Sasuke to digest his thoughts alone.

'The seal is loosening?' The more he thought, the clearer it all became. Suddenly all of Naruto's strange behavior made sense! The sudden assault on his nose, the garish clothing, the sudden taste for seclusion. Sasuke sat lost in thought and troubled acceptation.

"According to the book, we can only hope to seal the beast in the second stage." Asuma said meanwhile. Kakashi nodded wordlessly.

"Or use a 'terminus stone'" Sasuke cut in absentmindedly.

"But we don't know what a terminus stone is." sighed Kakashi. Sasuke turned to them in surprise.

"You don't?"

"Do **you**?"

"Well…No. Then what do we do?" he asked in concern.

"We can only assume that as of now, the only means of halting the process is to seal Kyuubi again within the second stage." Kakashi said, with his usual tactful mind and analyzing thought process.

"Can that be done? Honestly, how many people do we know who can perform a sealing jutsu strong enough to hold Kyuubi?" noted Asuma, ever the antagonist. The room was silent for a while when Sasuke piped up.

"Maybe I could do it? I think I have enough chakra and expertise to at least try." he offered confidently.

"No! It's a suicide attempt. It's no wonder Minato died sealing Kyuubi. I can't let that happen to my own student." Sasuke fell silent at Kakashi's words. He was quite firm about it so Sasuke sensed no use in pursuing the argument.

"No… If it comes to that, I will do it." Kakashi said.

***

"N-Naruto… P-Put the k-k-kunai down…" Hinata said slowly and carefully. Naruto pushed the kunai closer to her neck threateningly. Hinata took a fearful step back only to find herself cornered against the wall of the alley.

"Shut up. You're just like all the others!" he cried. Hinata wondered why he was being so hasty and rash. It wasn't like him to condemn his friends so quickly. Then she noticed his eyes. They were mostly blue but this time they were tinged red.

"N-Naruto d-don't do th-this! K-Kyuubi i-is m-manipulating y-you!" Naruto just scoffed.

"Don't play innocent. You're here to kill me." he said. Hinata's eyes widened.

"What? Wh-Who g-gave you th-that idea?" she asked, horrified. Naruto's tails flicked irritably, as if he was getting tired of this. Hinata saw the extra tail.

"Naruto… Th-the f-fourth t-tail." she said. At this point of time, she was more worried about the increasing speed of the transformation than the fact that there was a knife to her throat. Naruto didn't reply but he smelled something on her. Something very unusual. Like a perfume only much stronger.

"Hinata… You smell strange…" he mumbled. His mind was starting to get hazy. Hinata's eyes widened.

'The perfume! It hasn't worn off yet!' she thought, panicky. Naruto's head reeled. His grip on the weapon loosened even while his sub conscience screamed at him to stay alert. Then it hit him.

"Poison! You poisoned me!" he hissed. It took all his strength and willpower just to muster up those words. Hinata turned pale and shook her head. The perfume was taking a stronger effect on him but why? It didn't have this sort of power over Neji. Naruto's head reeled again. He fought for consciousness. Falling unconscious right now could spell the end for him, or so he thought. But he couldn't keep it up. Naruto started to fall. Hinata reached forward to catch him.

"Stay back!" he muttered. In his dizziness, he thrust the kunai further than he had intended. Hinata cried out. He realized his mistake and pulled back but the damage was done. A long red cut ran across Hinata's neck. She stood stock still, thanking her lucky stars that the cut hadn't been deeper. Naruto fell the rest of the way and landed heavily on the cold alley floor. The kunai fell out of his grasp and clattered on the stones. Through the haze, he watched as Hinata tied a piece of cloth around her neck to staunch the bleeding. He suddenly felt a pang of guilt. Had he been reduced to this? Hurting the people close to him? Unknown to him, Kyuubi's strong drive for survival and escape had overcome his own better judgement. Finally, Naruto succumbed to the darkness.

Hinata's white handkerchief was already darkening with blood. Thankfully though, the kunai had missed her jugular or else it would have ended for her. Hinata stared at Naruto's unconscious body. His hair was starting to hang over his face. Was it just her or was his hair getting rapidly longer? His clothes were drenched and blackened at the same time. Curious combination. Hinata knelt down to get a closer look. Apparently he'd been in the rain last night. **And** he was singed. Maybe it was an explosive tag? He had been fighting, but with whom? Hinata tried to piece the puzzle together. Then his fox ears caught her eye. Despite the fact that they had put Naruto through hell since their appearance, she couldn't help but think that they looked adorable. Unable to control herself, she reached out and touched one. It twitched sensitively from her touch.

'That's so cute!' Hinata smiled. But then she remembered the task at hand. 'What am I doing? I don't have time to mess around!' she scolded herself and picked Naruto up bridal style. She blushed. How many fantasies had she dreamt up like this? Except… She was supposed to be in Naruto's position and vice versa but whatever. She decided to return to Naruto's home. After all, she couldn't go back to the Hyuuga Manor. Neji would have surely have discovered the clone by now. Hinata jumped up onto the roof of a building. There had obviously been some horrible misunderstanding but right now, Naruto needed somebody. So when he awoke, she would set things straight.

***

When Naruto opened his eyes, he expected to be faced with the ANBU Black Ops or the Hokage or maybe even a testing lab. However, he was surprised to find himself in his own bedroom at home. And… he felt empty. In the place of all that rage was just emptiness.

'Was that a dream then?' he wondered. He looked at himself. He was still a mess and his clothes were still ruined. But a neat pile of clean and ironed clothes sat on the bed beside him.

'Odd…' he cocked his head to one side but changed out of his old clothes anyway. Feeling slightly cleaner than before, Naruto exited his room and caught sight of the bathroom door. He decided to take a bath. But when he tried to turn the knob, he found it locked. Naruto froze in his tracks.

'I'm not alone!' he thought, heart racing. Carefully, so as to not alert the person inside, he put his ear to the door. He heard water falling to the floor so it was evident that the shower was on. And curiously enough, someone inside was singing. As he listened, he realized that it was Hinata's voice.

'Of course! Hinata.' she must have brought him home and ironed his clothes too. Naruto sat with his back resting on the bathroom door. So it seemed Hinata had not become a crazed bounty hunter. He didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed. After all, if he was handed over to the authorities, they might just put him out of his misery. He sighed and rested his head on the door. They weren't even halfway through the afternoon and he was already exhausted. He let his gaze wander to the window. Outside, winter had officially taken over. Delicate flakes of snow floated to the ground. It looked as though Konoha would have its first inch of snow by the evening. On a day like this, it was easy to lay back with a cup of tea, skip training, ambush innocents with snowballs and maybe spend some time with friends. But Naruto had outlived that stage of his life.

Just then the singing in the bathroom stopped and the shower was turned off. Naruto should've taken that as a sign to leave the door and pretend he'd never been there but the lull of the cold had numbed his brain. The door behind him was pulled open. Naruto, balance offset by the sudden shift of support, fell onto his back. He found himself staring up at Hinata, clad in a towel with dripping wet hair.

"N-Naruto!" she blushed bright red. For a moment, he thought she was going to have one of her fainting spells but she seemed to maintain herself. Naruto didn't know what to say.

"Th-that's i-indecent…" she mumbled, still red. Naruto sat up and laughed abruptly.

"Wh-What?" she blushed even brighter, if that was possible.

"Is that all? Sakura would have called me a pervert and punched me!" he laughed. Hinata stared at him. His violent mood swings were starting to put her off. One minute he was trying to kill her, the next he was laughing in front of the bathroom. But never look a gift horse in the mouth right? Fortunately though, the traces of red in his eyes seemed to have receded. Naruto glanced at Hinata's face. She was still red. He took the hint, leapt to his feet, and ran from the room.

Later, when Hinata had dressed, the two were seated on Naruto's couch drinking tea.

"What was that weird scent on you Hinata?" Naruto asked. He'd been meaning to ask for some time now.

"I-It w-was a p-perfume that n-numbs th-the opponent's s-senses. B-But i-it shouldn't b-be able t-to kn-knock s-someone out…" she said, puzzled.

"Why were you wearing something like that?"

"T-To g-get away f-from N-Neji…" she muttered. Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Huh? Neji?" Hinata nodded.

"H-He w-was k-keeping m-me under h-house a-arrest. I-I c-couldn't see y-you." Naruto's eyes widened in understanding. So this was why she couldn't see him last night. He felt a bit guilty. Maybe he had been too quick to judge. Hinata noticed he was looking a bit upset.

"B-But th-that's n-not the p-point!" she said, quickly changing the topic. "Th-The thing i-is…" she looked uncomfortable. "Th-This i-is… g-getting out o-of h-hand." she let it out.

Hinata turned to him, watching his expression.

"I know." Naruto said simply. He was staring out the window again, watching the snow fall.

"Wh-What sh-should w-we do?" Hinata felt like she had lost him. He wasn't paying attention. Silence prevailed for a long time.

"I have to die, Hinata." he said finally. Hinata whipped around and stared at him, shocked.

"D-Don't say th-things l-like that!" she cried.

"It's the only way. If I die… Kyuubi will die with me. Konoha will be safe." he continued. Hinata had to admit, he had a point but she didn't want to accept that.

"No. Th-There h-has t-to b-be s-some other w-way." It was then that she noticed. Naruto's eyes had lost that spark. The spark that allowed him to outlast his tormenters, that willed him to keep trying, that never let him give up.

"You say that, but do you have any other ideas? There's no other way. I'm too far gone already." Naruto was trying to give up. Hinata wanted to say something. She desperately did. Something inspirational that would give him a reason to live. But… speaking was not her forte. That was Naruto's department. Suddenly, Naruto turned to face her.

I don't want to hurt you, Hinata…" he put a finger on the cut he had made earlier. Hinata stared back at him. Was he trying to…? "I don't want to hurt anyone for that matter." Oh… He was being general. The moment was broken as Naruto faced the window again. Hinata scooted a little closer to him. He didn't seem to notice. She joined him in staring out the window, watching the flakes spiral to the ground. In the silence and peace, she felt happy just to be with him. The future could wait a little longer. Even then… she couldn't help but wonder whether this was just the calm before the storm.

***

"That's it! It's over for him." Neji paced restlessly back and forth in the living room. He knew there was something off about that woman! But he never expected Hinata to pull off something this daring! Neji flushed with anger in remembrance of the incident. He'd been so gullible! No doubt she'd run off to Naruto's place. He could go there right now and put an end to this… Neji glanced out the window. It was snowing. The scenery outside was white and beautiful… not that Neji could take time to notice it.

'No. I can't go like this. Naruto is dangerous. I'd better be prepared for anything." Neji clenched his hand into a fist.

'**Anything**.'

***

"No way!" Sakura stared at Sasuke incredulously.

"That's what I said too. But it's true. It's happening." Sasuke sighed from his position across the bed from her.

"So Kyuubi is breaking free of the seal." Sakura sat deep in thought. Her face lit up from the pink floor lamps set up in her room.

"Is there some sort of medical jutsu you can use to stop this?" Sasuke asked hopefully. Sakura shook her head.

"No this is Kyuubi. This is big. I think we should go tell Tsunade." she said. Sasuke shook his head violently.

"No! Kakashi sensei clearly said Tsunade shouldn't get involved!" he cried.

"And why not? She's a perfectly trustworthy person!" Sakura said huffily.

"I know she is…" Sasuke trailed off, panicky. If Tsunade got to know then war would break out.

"Then it's decided. We'll tell her." Sakura said decisively. She obviously couldn't foresee the backlash of her idea.

"Look you've got to trust me!" Sasuke put his hands on her shoulders. Sakura blushed lightly. Maybe she believed him. Maybe she enjoyed the close proximity. Either way she didn't press the matter. Sakura shrugged.

"Fine. But what will happen to Naruto if nothing is done?" she asked. Sasuke sighed. He didn't want to answer that question. An image of the final page flashed in his mind.

'_The original vessel's death is inevitable'_

---

I bet you all can guess why the perfume had a greater effect on Naruto ;)

Anyway, thanks so much for all the reviews! I'm so happy I could hug you but I can't so…

*Virtual Hug*


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